IAAF 2013/14 Cross Country Permit series gets underway this weekend

The series of 12 individual meetings which make up the calendar of the IAAF Cross Country Permit 2013/14 season will kick off in Soria, Spain, on Sunday (10).

During the next four months, many of the world’s finest distance runners will be taking part in the series that traverses three continents before its conclusion in Nairobi on 15 February at the Athletics Kenya Cross Country, one of the highest-quality cross-country races in the world.

With the IAAF World Cross Country Championships taking a break this year in its two-year cycle, this 12-meeting series – with stops in Europe, Africa and Asia – takes on an even more important role in representing the very pinnacle of long distance running competition over variable terrain.

Cross-country running exemplifies the true accessibility of athletics, as even the poorest nations can participate at the top international level, with minimal finance and facilities. It is the purest of activities, requiring nothing but guts and determination to succeed; characteristics which are at the heart of the sport’s enduring international appeal.

It also brings together runners whose expertise lies in every distance from 1500m to the Marathon on neutral – if sometimes muddy and snowy – turf.

As in previous years, you’ll be able to follow all the action in the 2013/2014 Cross Country Permit mini-site.